Howdon depot

Howdon Depot is a vehicle cleaning, maintenance and stabling facility used by the Tyne and Wear Metro, in Howdon, North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is equipped with ten storage roads, and is capable of accepting and assembling the new fleet of Class 555 Metro currently being constructed by Stadler.^[1][2] It also features a maintenance shed with a single road and a pit underneath, as well as one shunt road.^[3]

Howdon Depot

Location in Tyne and Wear, England
Location
Location	Howdon, North Tyneside England
Coordinates	54°59′46″N 1°29′10″W
OS grid	NZ328669
Characteristics
Owner	Tyne and Wear PTE
Operator	Tyne and Wear Metro
Type	Light rail
Rolling stock	Class 555 Metro Class 599 Metrocar
History
Opened	October 2020; 4 years ago (2020-10)
Original	Tyne and Wear Metro

History

The depot was constructed on the site of a former landfill, by Buckingham Group Contracting, as a temporary satellite of South Gosforth depot, ahead of refurbishment work commencing.^[4] A groundbreaking ceremony took place in June 2019,^[5] with the main construction phase commencing in late 2019.^[6] Opening was initially expected in July 2020,^[7][8][9] but this was delayed, with the depot becoming operational in December 2020,^[3][10][11]

The depot has the capacity to house 25% of the current Metrocar fleet, which allowed for a continuing service whilst the main depot at South Gosforth was upgraded. Construction of the new 12-acre (49,000 m²) South Gosforth depot completed in January 2024.^[12][13][14]